Ah, that's the question a lot of men ask themselves when the thought about grooming their pubes comes to mind.
Should leave it? Trim it? Or shave it all off?
It took me a little while to get used to it. At first I was like a lot of other men feeling that shaving your pubes made you look prepubescent. Not any more because I have joined the smooth crowd and prefer that look on my boyfriends, though there are definitely excepts to be made.
So did this whole smooth look start with the Porno Industry?
Well, according to history…no. Shaving the pubic area has evolved over the centuries reflecting cultural norms, hygiene practices, and personal preferences. The history of shaving can be traced back to ancient civilizations. It seems that the Egyptian were among the first to practice body hair removal, using sharpened stones and seashells to remove unwanted hair either for aesthetic or hygienic reasons. In their culture, hairlessness was associated with cleanliness and social status. The Greeks also contributes to the evolution of grooming practices. They viewed body hair as a sign of barbarism, preferring the smooth look.Greek athletes would shave their bodies before competitions to enhance their physique and performance. This trend spread across various regions, influencing grooming habits in Rome and beyond.
In ancient Rome, the upper classes adopted elaborate grooming rituals. Wealthy Roman men and women employed slaves to assist with personal grooming, including shaving the pubic area. The Romans associated hairlessness with youthfulness and beauty, leading to a societal expectation for well-groomed bodies.
During the Middle Ages the Christian Church played a significant role in shaping attitudes towards body hair. Removal became less common as it was often associated with pagan practices. Many people believed that body hair was a natural part of God’s creation and should not be altered.
The Renaissance marked a significant turning point in the history of shaving pubic areas, As art and culture flourished, so did the appreciation for aesthetics and beauty standards. Artists such as Botticelli celebrated the human form, leading to a renewed interest in body grooming.
Men’s grooming underwent transformation as well. They began using sophisticated razors crafted from high-quality materials. The rise of barbershops offered professional services for men seeking smooth skin in intimate areas.
The Victorian era introduced strict codes regarding modesty and sexuality that heavily influenced grooming habits. Men’s grooming continued evolving; barbers became increasingly popular throughout urban centers where men sought expert advice on maintaining their appearance— including pubic grooming techniques.
Early porn had everyone shaved cause showing the vagina, OR the bush was not allowed by law so the photographers would do some ancient photoshop, by scratching the cooch off the film... manually. Then the bush was legalized in photography around I think... the 20s or 30s, but showing vagina was not allowed until the 50s or so.
Shaving really got started cause of bikinis. You could no longer be running a rain forest down there once those high waisted bikinis became the norm in the late 70s, early 80s so we got landing strips - then the style moved to lower waisted bikinis so we got the triangle one, and now it's nothing more or less.
Porn producers were actually mad about the shaving trend at the time cause they thought it would make porn boring if all the girls 'looked the same down there'. They were wrong I guess.
In a study of 1,560 English-speaking 18- to 25-year-olds, published in Anzjog, 69.4% reported participating in grooming behaviour, with a similar amount of men choosing to shave their pubic area as women.
Just under three quarters (71%) shave their pubic area once every month.
Data was collected for two similarly aged cohorts, occurring in 2014 and again in 2021.
Interestingly, it found that women were less likely to shave down there in 2021 than they were nine years ago.
Also, in 2014, no men responded to the survey, whereas 65% said they engaged in pubic hair grooming in 2021, showing a gendered shift.
‘Traditionally, men have not engaged in depilatory behaviours, as the presence of body hair was considered masculine, attractive and virile,’ researchers wrote.
‘However, more recently it appears that the hairless physicality of males has been embraced, perhaps as exposure to pornography has increased with greater opportunities to engage in sex with the use of dating software applications.’
